His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the University of Pisa, Italy. Photo/Olivier Adam

DHARAMSHALA: His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s recent visit to Italy garnered a massive coverage in the Italian media with 100 stories listed on Google news alone.

Both the print and electronic media of Italy including La Sicilia, Repubblica, Viviena, Observeitalia, Tempostretto, have covered the visit. The media have lauded His Holiness for his message of peace, non-violence and secular ethics that he brought to the country.

Both the public and officials of the country also welcomed the visit with deep reverence. In appreciation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s visit, His Holiness was conferred the ‘Builder of Peace, Justice and Nonviolence Prize’ in Messina (Italy) on 17 September.

His Holiness was also bestowed an Honorary Masters Degree by the University of Pisa on 21 September.

The Mayors of Isola delle Femmine and Ventimiglia di Sicilia—two towns in Palermo, Sicily in Italy, awarded honorary citizenship to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on 18 September.

The latest visit was His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 29th visit to the country since his first visit in 1973. His Holiness has a huge fan base in Europe including Italy where he is regularly voted as one of the most admired spiritual leaders.